"We visited the hotel at the beginning of the season and had a cheap all inclusive deal, so I cannot really complain. However, if we had paid full price or it was our main holiday this year, I would have found it quite disappointing.
It is a lovely resort overall and is in a nice quiet location. Our room was on the ground floor and looked directly out to sea with a perfect view of the sunset each night. The room was cleaned daily, extra blankets were available when we asked at reception (it was freezing at night!) and the bottled water was replenished daily.
The room was lovely and quiet to begin with as there was no-one in the room above, however when the room was in use we could hear every move our upstairs neighbours were making which is what I woke to every morning. Also, I think we must have been sharing a hot water tank as we had to go to the hotel reception more than once to report having no hot water. The staff did tend to it quite quickly most of the time.
The staff at reception were very helpful, and the cleaners and staff you see around the resort are friendly. Later in the week when it was busier the waiters were very eager to collect your empty plates (swiping it from under me while I was still finishing my last mouthful) which made you feel rushed at meal times. Also, only the all inclusive buffet was open (I guess because of it being early in the season) so it was very busy and there were no other options on site.
On the subject of the all inclusive buffet, there is not a very good selection of food available especially for vegetarians. Even some of the salads had meat needlessly added on top (normally chopped up small pieces of ham) and in some cases they were still labelled as vegetarian which we did point out to one of the waiters... Most of the vegetarian options were just chips, pizza, plain pasta or vegetables with sauce. The seats in the restaurant are really grubby and I felt I had to perch on the edge as I did not want to sit on them. Most meal times were the same so we found a better option was to go off-site for at least one meal a day. We found some nice restaurants with good vegetarian options in Kos Old Town and on the other side of the island.
The drinks were also not good. I am not a big drinker but I do like the occasional cocktail on holiday, most of the ones I tried were disgusting and we're just flavoured syrups mixed together. I'm not even sure the strawberry limoncello had any alcohol in it at all, I watched it being made and it seemed to be strawberry syrup, lemon syrup and soda. They also use off-brand cola which tastes like dirty water, and the 'juices' are more like weak cordial, except for one morning at breakfast the orange didn't seem to have been diluted and was undrinkable. There are branded soft drinks and snacks available in the shop at reception, so we resorted to buying cans and storing them in the fridge in our room. There is also a supermarket/coffee shop about 20 minutes walk down the road which has a good range of snacks and fresh food, which came in handy. They also do proper Greek coffee there which is not available at the hotel.
On one occasion I stopped to ask the Jet2 rep about one of the experiences I was interested in and she knew nothing about it, even though it was advertised through the Jet2 app. So, we opted to rent a car for a few days to see the island and eat out. It was very easy to arrange this through reception, although the prices are higher than other car rental places in the area, but we decided the convenience of collecting and dropping off the car on site was worth the extra cost. There is a shuttle bus into Kos town from the hotel for 8EUR per person (return) but it doesn't stop anywhere else and doesn't run between 12.20pm and 5pm. I did see a bus stop near the hotel but we didn't use it so I am unsure of pricing. A taxi back from Kos town was 12EUR (one way) when the shuttle wasn't running.
I would say that the best option is definitely to hire a car. We had the freedom to travel round the island in our own time. It was windy while we were there but beaches on the other side of the island were warm and sheltered, so we often spent the morning exploring, had lunch out, and spent the afternoon on the beach. It is only about 40 minutes drive to the other end of the island, a round trip of multiple sights (Zia, the Asklepion, Kefalos, etc) is easily doable in a day.
Although the hotel is in a lovely sea front location there is no real beach. There is a small strip of sand which is littered and scruffy, which is a shame. I'm not sure if it just hasn't been cleaned yet as it was early in the season, but you would not be able to sit there, we didn't even want to walk along it which we usually do. The beaches at Kefalos or St Agios (I think that is what it was called) are worth a trip out if you want soft sand and turquoise waters.
The pool areas are nice and there were plenty of sun loungers, although the numbering system was confusing and caused some guests to be territorial (loudly claiming their loungers in the morning even though they weren't actually going to use them, to stop others from using them). I understand that certain guests have priority over certain loungers but there are plenty available so it didn't really make a difference.
I would say that even though it was beginning of season when we were there and I assume it was quieter than usual, as certain facilities were not yet available, it did get very busy in the buffet and at the main pool so I would not like to experience what those areas are like during busier periods.
Overall, if you are looking at this resort as your main holiday and paying full-price then I think there are better options available. However, if you are looking for a cheap getaway to sit by the pool and relax, and you are not worried about the standard of food and drink, or are happy to explore the island and eat elsewhere, then this is a lovely resort with great views over the sea and mountains."
